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GAME APPARATUS.

I Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 29, i913.

Application tiled October 13, 1912. Serial No. 726,516.

To all whom, it mag concern;

Be it known thatI, SAMUEL B'Rnnonn, a citizen of the United States, andvresiding at Washington, in the District of Columbia, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in game apparatus and hasparticular relation to that class employinga board over which playingpieces or men are adapted to be moved The objects of my invention are toprovide an apparatus which may act in the nature of a puzzle, thesolution of which is obtained by manipulating the playing pieces in apredetermined order; to provide anapparatus in which the playing piecesareformed to enable either end to be used, with the board provided withconfigurations complemental to both ends of the pieces, therebyrestricting the moves of the playing pieces; and to provide an apparatuswhich will not only require study to solve the puzzle but which will beamusing to the manipulatoror onlockers.

To these and other ends, the nature of which will be readily understoodas the invention is hereinafter discussed, my invention consists in theimproved construction and combination of parts hereinafter fullydescribed, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularlypointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, in which similar reference characters indicate similarparts in each of the views: Figure'l is a plan View of one form of theboard forming part of my apparatus. Fig. 2 is a collective diagrammaticview showing the configuration of the ends of the several playing piecesused in con nection with the board of Fig. 1. Fi 3 is a side elevationof the several pieces re erred to in connection with Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is asectional view showing the general idea and illustrating one way inwhich the board may e'arranged, the section being on line 44 of Fig. 1.Fig. 5 is an end view of a differentform of board, and, Fig. 6 is adiagrammatic view showing the initial arrangement of the playing pieceson the board required to provide a solution of the puzzle.

The main feature of the board portion of the apparatus is thearrangement and confi ration of the positioning means for the p aymgpieces. I prefer to provide actual depressions or sockets to receive thepieces, but the manner in which these are provided is immaterial. Forinstance, the board may be made as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, wherein theboard is indicated at a, and in which the construction is such as toform sockets a'. It will be obvious, however, that a slmilar result inthe playing of the game will be provided by the use of a plate a throughwhich openings the equivalent of the sockets -a'- extend, the openingsor the formation of sockets either by a construction such as shown inFig. 4 or by simply providing recesses within a board, being consideredas equivalents, the term sockets employed herein being intended toinclude any form of construction which will permit of the seating of theplaying piece in a manner to practically prevent promiscuous movement ofthe playing pieces about the board.

As shown in Fig. 1, the sockets a are preferably arranged in rows whichintersect each other at right angles, the confi ration of the sockets asan entirety resem ling a Greek cross, the drawings showing threeparallel vertical rows and three parallel horizontal rows, each rowhaving seven sockets, the total number of sockets being 33.

- As shown in Fig. 1, I preferably form the sockets with variousconfigurations, the presout form showing the use of four differentconfigurations, these configurations being arranged in a pre-determinedform in the present instance in order that the game may be restricted toa solution only by one prescribed form of manipulation.

The playing pieces or men, indicated in Figs. 2 and 3, as b, -b, --b--b--, b, and -b are preferably in the form of double ended pieces,the-ends being adapted to enter the sockets -a-, the two ends of a piecebeing of a configuration complemental to two sockets of differentconfiguration; I preferably provide a fia e -b for each end of thepiece, these %anges being of a size to preferably cover the socket whenthe piece is in POSI- tion. As will be readily understood and as shownin Figs. 2 and 3, this particular waygame disclosed herein is along thelines of the game of checkers, the movements of the pieces, however,being restricted to the jumping of a piece with the direction of jumpingmovement confined to the direction of length of the rows, it beingunderstood that the pieces may move along the short or the long rows,but not diagonally.

As the number of pieces is one less than that of the board, and thepieces have their ends of difierent configuration, it will be readilyunderstood that while the pieces must be seated in the sockets withcomplemental configurations, the board thus indicating the generalarrangement in which the pieces are placed, the opposite ends of thepieces which thus become exposed differ from the arrangement shown inthe board, so that the selection of pieces when the latter are placed inposition is of importance,

an incorrect placing practically rendering it impossible to solve thepuzzle, and 'this fact constitutes the first portion of the puzzle. inFig. 6, is shown the manner in which the exposed ends of the pieces mustbe arranged initially in order that the puzzle may be successfully.worked. The placing of the pieces however, does not constitute theentire puzzle, since they must be manipulated in pre-determined orderand in pre-determined directions in order to provide the finalsuccessful outcome. For the purpose of explaining this, I will give thesuccessive movements of the pieces it being understood that the piecesare lnitially placed so as to leave the central socket blank, and thepuzzle is to provide successive jumps in such manner that the lastjumpwill carry the remaining piece into said central socket. For the purposeof illustrating the successive movements, I have indicated the socketsby successive numerals. In the following table, I give the successivemovements (the first numeral indicating the socket from which the pieceis being moved, while the second numeral indicates the socket to whichthe piece is to be moved), and also give the socket from which the pieceis thereb eliminated by being jumped, those numera s' I which arefollowed by bracketed numerals indicating the socket from which thepiece is eliminated and also the socket originally occupied by the pieceso removed.

No. of move. Move. Piece eliminated.

1 2917 24 2 2224 23 3 3123 28 4 24---22 23 a1) 5 2e-- 24 25 a 17-2) 24(2e) 7 32-24 29 8 33-25 30 a 24 -26 25 (33) 10 27- 25 26 (32) 1118----30 25 (27) 12 13- 27 20 13 12-26 19 14 27 25 26 (1'2) 15 a 30-4825 (1a) 16 10-12 11 17 311 6 1s 18 -6 11 (a) 19 1-3 2 20 -11 6 (18) 2112-40 11 (1) 22 9- 1 4 23 7---9 8 24 16- 4 a 27) 25 1 9 4 1e) 26 110-8 927 21--7 14 28 7-9 s (10) 29 228 30 s-10 9 21) 31 5 17 10 22) As will beseen, some of the moves require being capable of moving to two sockets,thus requiring a selection as between which end is to be employed.

As will be obvious, the particular configuration of the sockets and ofthe ends of the pieces is such that there is a suggestion as to thesucceeding move where it is known whichpiece is to be moved, and thisaids somewhat in the playing of the game, although the question of whichend is to be employed requires selection. This will be indicated fromthe showing of Fig. 6 with respect to the first move indicated in theabove explanation. The piece of either of sockets 5, 15, 19 or 29 mayprovide the first move, the exposed end of these pieces being of thesame configuration with that of the open socket 17 while this apparentlypermits of the use of either one of four moves as an initial move, itwill be found that none will provide the result with the exception ofthat starting from socket 29.

While I have shown a particular arrangement of sockets as well as aparticular conticular form of socket configuration, the essential beingthat the board have sockets of difierent configuration and the playingpieces have complemental configurations to provide a selection betweensockets, the piece configuration being coniplemental to that of thesockets so that there is a restriction as to movement ofa piece but atthe same time providing for a selection and suggestion in moves. Asheretofore pointed out, the particular form of the board is immaterial,and the playing pieces can also be provided in any desired form so longas theypossess the characteristics herein noted.

Having thus described my I claim as new is 1. Game apparatus comprisinga board having a plurality of independent configurations adapted toindicate the location of playing pieces, said configurations beingarranged in geometrical order and being differentiated to provide atleast two series, and playing pieces adapted to cooperate with andrender all of said configurations active in the playing of .the game,each piece carrying configurations complemental to two boardconfigurations of difierent series.

invention, What 2. Game apparatus comprising a board having a pluralityof sockets arranged in geometrical order, said sockets having at leasttwo series of differentiated variations, and playing pieces adapted tocooperate with the sockets in the playing of the game, each piececarrying configurations complemental to two sockets of differentconfiguration.

3. In game apparatus, a board having a plurality of sockets arranged ingeometrical order, said sockets having at least two series ofconfigurations differentiated by contour.

4. In game apparatus, a playing piece having ends adapted to be receivedby a game board, said ends having cross-sectional contours difiering onefrom the other, whereby either end may become active as a support forthe piece during the playing of a game.

In testimony whereof I atliX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL B. REEDER.

\Vitnesses HORACE G. Snrrz, A. M. WILSON.

